


Priceless

by slash-em-up (writeonrice)



Category: The Collector Series (Movies)
Genre: Blood and Gore, Bugs, F/M, Gen, Implied/Referenced Torture, Is it a romance or is it science?, Marriage of Convenience, Torture, and then Arkin shows up, awkward social interactions, future smut, he’s her research subject, he’s not a nice man, science-boner, she’s his serial killer beard, starting near the end and moving backwards, they’re definitely studying each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-15
Updated: 2019-04-15
Packaged: 2020-01-14 12:28:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 746
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18476239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/writeonrice/pseuds/slash-em-up
Summary: Such a sweet couple - those Jones’s - always so attentive to each other.... If only they knew...





	Priceless

**Author's Note:**

> Welp. Here it is. My first OC. This is just a small introductory chapter; but hopefully it whets your appetite for more of Charlotte and her mean bug-boy. Enjoy!!

If James didn’t insist on stocking up on canned goods like the fucking apocalypse was about to occur, Charlotte Jones would not be having nearly as hard a time carrying the groceries into the house as she was.

Theoretically, Charlotte - or Charlie, as her mother and sister preferred to call her – understood her husband’s tendencies towards paranoia. In his line of work, it was only appropriate to plan for the absolute worst. 

After all, a serial-killer wasn’t exactly a career you chose for the retirement plan; but oh lord, did it give Charlie the best first-person David Attenborough-like observation that anyone would probably ever have into the life and patterns of a 21st century hunter-gatherer (who just happened to hunt and gather people, but that was neither here nor there). 

None of this solved the current dilemma of how to carry the worlds heaviest paper bag into the modest, two-story, suburban home Charlie shared with her husband. 

Opening the screen-door with a well-placed high-kick, the slender, mousy, woman blew a strand of sandy curls from her eyes as she bumped the inner hardwood portal open with her hip. Success.

A small hum and wiggle of satisfaction was all that Charlotte was allowed before she was pulled roughly against a hard chest. 

Charlie gasped noiselessly as cold steel touched her throat, pressing tightly against the thumping pulse of her jugular.

A loud ‘CLANG’ sounded as the bag of groceries dropped to the ground. 

Cans and bottles rolling noisily across the hardwood floor, seemingly silent to both occupants of the house as they stood stock-still in assessment of the other.

“Please, please, don’t hurt me. I-I don’t have anything valuable, I don’t have any cash. I –“

A soft, male, baritone responded to Charlotte’s plea with a terse tone. 

“Shut the fuck up. Shut up right now. I’m don’t want to hurt you. Stay calm and answer my questions; this doesn’t have to get messy. “

Whimpering slightly, Charlotte nodded her head as shallowly as she dared with the unforgiving metal sitting on her vulnerable flesh. 

“First off, who are you?”

“I’m Charlotte, please, I’m a professor at the community college, I don’t…”

“Charlotte who?”

“Charlotte Jones…”

“You married Charlotte?”

“… what? Yes… yes, I’m married. My husband will be home any minute and he’ll –“

“What does your husband do?”

“… Um, I…”

“What does he FUCKING DO?!”

“HE’S AN EXTERMINATOR, OH GOD, PLEASE DON’T KILL ME!”

A low chuckle met Charlotte quiet sobs.

“He’s a fucking exterminator now. God damn, bastard; hiding in plain sight…”

The pieces slowly began to assemble in Charlie’s head, and the picture they showed was disheartening at best.

“Listen… I was lying. I’ve got about $300 in my purse right now - take it and go - I promise I won’t tell the police.”

Another chuckle

“Heh – sweetheart, you met me on the wrong day. Any other time and I might take you up on that…”

“Arkin, please…”

Charlie paused as soon as the damning phrase left her mouth.

Arkin O’Brian tightened his unforgiving grip around Charlotte; growling lowly into her ear.

“First Abby, now you, what the fuck does he do to make you bitches so loyal?”

At the sound of Abby’s name Charlotte tensed up. 

“You know about Abby? Please, Arkin, it’s not like that at all; it’s totally different. I’m studying him. I swear, it’s nothing like it was with Abby. Just let me explain and I’ll…”

One hard push was all it took to send Charlie sprawling to the floor, hitting her head on the table sitting innocently in the entryway on the way down. 

Through blurry eyes, Charlie watched as Arkin stepped slowly towards her prone form. 

‘I wonder if this is how all of James’ victims feel when they see him coming…’

Arkin leaned down next to her head;

“You’ve been letting the fucking devil do his work for years without saying a god damn word. If there’s any justice in the world, you’ll burn like he will.”

Standing, Arkin grabbed at Charlotte’s arms, dragging her further into the house towards a painfully familiar red trunk.

“I didn’t plan on taking two today, so I guess you’ll just have to relax in the closet until your husband and I have our little talk…”

Charlie moaned in pain as she was unceremoniously pushed into the small hall closet.

“I’ll be back soon, sweetheart.”

The sliver of light from the entryway began to fade, as did Charlie’s vision.

Soon, the world was completely black.


End file.
